YOu get to the point where you don't have any food left, they've turned off your electric cause you couldn't pay, and you don't have a penny to your name. Your family has helped you so many times that you can't even ask again. So you go to the welfare office hoping that maybe they can help. I was in the boonies, so getting to see someone only took a day, but I heard that in the cities it could take weeks.

So you go to the office and they show you a typical dirty government waiting room - and you wait. In comes a woman (white) with two babies in the same carriage. She and the kids are so dirty that you could write your name on their cheeks using a wet finger. They go in to see someone. Others, mostly white but some blacks too, come and go. No one says anything to you or calls your name. Your baby starts getting fidgity from boredom so you ask quietly at the window if they know how long it will be and they tell you to SHUT UP AND SIT DOWN AND WE"LL GET TO YOU and you start to cry because your whole fucking life is shit and no one even cares and every jerk in the world takes his chance to kick you around.

eventually your time does come and the interviewer says she can give you some food stamps today and get you going for next month, but you need to bring in papers ... your birth certificate, baby's too, marriage papers, divorce papers, letter from your landlord, copies of bills, proof of residency, etc. and if you don't have it in the next two weeks then they will stop your application.

The lady asks you what you want to do with your life and you tell her you want to go to college but you don't know how you can with the baby and all ... and they tell you about their daycare program where they will pay your daycare expenses if you are a student. YOu tell them you want to start at the community college in September and they help you arrange it.

In the meantime you take your foodstamps to the grocery store and try to buy food and diapers. Sorry, you can't buy diapers ... food products only, please. And you sigh. What can you do?

When things get settled in general and your life isn't so shitty anymore, you can take the time to look around you. You can see people glare at you when you buy groceries. See ... if you buy ANYTHING other than meat and veggies people give you the evil eye. Sorry, my kid likes Cheerios - we're getting them, and you're going to have to deal with it. It's not too much to ask. And no, I don't drive a fucking cadillac. I can't afford a car at all. I rely on people who are nice to drive me to the store once in a while. But you'd be surprised how few nice people there are in the world because there is one fact I know above them all - everyone HATES poor people. They sure seem to hate me and my baby, I'll tell you that.

Eventually you graduate from community college and get accepted to four year school. But you will no longer be able to get welfare because they don't help people who aren't in "directly employable majors". In other words, because you are majoring in a liberal art, they won't help you anymore. But it's okay, because you can use your student loans and whatnot to make it. See, in your state they have family housing right on campus to you can use your financial aid money to pay the rent and utilites.

SO eventually, because of the kindness and generosity of people you didn't even know, you are actually able not only to get a good job, take good care of your kid, and be a productive member of society, but to pay taxes so that the next Mizmoon who comes along will be able to get help when she needs it too ...

Powered by DCForum+ Version 1.1 Copyright 1997-2002 DCScripts.com
Software has been extensively modified by the DU administrators

Important Notices: By participating on this discussion
board, visitors agree to abide by the rules outlined on our Rules
page. Messages posted on the Democratic Underground Discussion Forums are the
opinions of the individuals who post them, and do not necessarily represent
the opinions of Democratic Underground, LLC.